Indian professional sprinter DUTEE CHAND was born to weaver couple Chakradhar Chand & Akhuji Chand of Chaka Gopalpur village, Jajpur district, Odisha on 3 Feb 1996. This humble weavers’ daughter is current National Champion iwomen's 100m event. She is the first Indian to win gold medal in 100m race in a global competition (The Universiade 2019, clocking 11.32s). She is the third Indian woman to ever qualify for Women's 100m event at Summer Olympic Games (2016).
Dutee was preparing for 2014 Commonwealth Games when Athletics Federation of India (AFI) dropped her from athletics contingent at the last minute, citing hyperandrogenism made her ineligible to compete as a woman athlete. Dutee appealed to Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in 2015. Her suspension was lifted. In 2018, Chand clinched silver in women's 100m at Jakarta Asian Games- India's first medal in this event since 1998.
In 2019 she became India's first ever openly lesbian athlete as she publicly stated that she is in a same-sex relationship, saying that Indian Supreme Court's decision to decriminalise gay sex in 2018 encouraged her to speak publicly about her sexuality.
Her source of inspiration is her elder sister Saraswati Chand, who competed in running at state level. Chand & Saraswati were enrolled in a govt sports hostel in 2006. In 2013, she enrolled in @kiituniversity to study law. She is now employed as an executive officer in the state PSU- Odisha Mining Corporation Ltd.
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For Women's Day on March 8 2021, we present stories of 8 Inspiring Women of Odisha. For this, at the outset, we want to thank #bmcbhubaneswar @smartcitybhubaneswar for conceptualizing the Street Art and Mural Project (STAMP) & making murals of fine women on Bhubaneswar's walls before #InternationalHockeyWorldCup2018. In busy city dwellers' lives, these 60 plus numbers of women's murals over a dedicated km-plus stretch of walls, have kept denizens connected to their awe-inspiring life stories. And Team Utkalamrita pays tribute to 8 such inspiring women, having done a humble photoshoot with these Larger-Than-Life Murals in the backdrop.
#womenempowerment #womensday #women
